- Swartz Creek schools on Tuesday turned down a $40 million offer for Morrish elementary.
- This was the second nearly identical offer that the board declined from an economic alliance assembling a speculative megasite.
- Without a deal, the school is among about a handful of property owners who are holdouts in the 1,300-acre state-funded site.
SWARTZ CREEK — A 400-student elementary school won’t become part of Michigan’s first speculative megasite after the Swartz Creek Community Schools on Tuesday rejected a second $40 million offer for the property.
The 5-2 vote came during a special Board of Education meeting two days before a deadline to respond to the offer for Morrish Elementary in Mundy Township near Flint Bishop Airport.
Most of the two dozen audience members urged the board to reject the deal proposed by the Flint & Genesee Economic Alliance, which is using $261 million in taxpayer dollars to buy 1,300 acres to attract a major employer to the region.
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So far, the group has bought about 95% of the land, including 165 houses that are being demolished. For several years, the project has been mired in controversy over secretive planning, over-market land buys, at least 160 home demolitions and the lack of a single tenant for the property.
“Somebody has to listen to taxpayers who don’t want to entertain an offer, especially from people using our tax dollars to buy something (the public) already paid for,” Trustee Autumn Henry said of the proposal.
School officials rejected the first offer in October after they uncovered details about secret negotiations.
Many speaking on Tuesday said they weren’t thrilled with the new offer, either, particularly if it meant building another elementary school.
Tyler Rossmaessler, executive director of the economic alliance, had told Bridge last week that the group had “made a fair offer.”
But many attending Monday’s meeting cited worries about rising construction costs and a lack of a clear plan to replace the school. Some said the price was too low.
“Forty million (dollars) isn’t going to do it,” said Donna McManus.
Yet the offer was “grossly inadequate” because it matched an offer from a year earlier, said Julie Asselin, whose property also sits within the megasite zone. The latest offer reduced fees and contingencies and eliminated closing costs for the district.
“I feel like nothing was gained,” she said.
“I’d hate to see that beautiful school get torn down after they tore down our neighborhood,” Asselin added.
But resident John Crandall said it seemed like it was time to make the best of a situation they’re been put into, maybe by trying to negotiate better terms, such as staying in the building beyond the proposed two years.
“It’s time to let this die and move on,” Crandall said.
The district had until Thursday to react to the deal, which had been presented in late June.
“There’s no way we can sell the school on short notice like this,” Board President Chuck Melki said as the board took turns commenting on the proposal, ultimately deciding to take the vote instead of waiting until their regular meeting on Wednesday.
The proposed sale of Morrish Elementary caused a yearlong controversy in the district, prompted resignations and a whistleblower lawsuit from the school board president over closed-door negotiations last year.
Former Superintendent Rod Hetherton starting in 2024 had worked out a potential sale price for Morrish and targeted a land purchase with the economic alliance, but the scope of the plans had never been taken to the full board.
During that time, the Michigan Economic Development Corp. was closing in on an anticipated deal with a semiconductor manufacturer. It awarded the economic alliance $259 million to buy and clear the 1,300 acres, assuring the company’s site selectors that “moving Morrish Elementary is a straightforward process.”
The deal — targeted at the time for $30 million — ”will require school board approval, but the superintendent has indicated moving and updating this school would be a positive move for the school district … and anticipates broad support for this effort,” state documents show.
Instead, the year of upheaval followed by an offer requiring a quick decision was “insulting,” Trustee Kim Winter said.
Also an issue among the audience and the board: How the offer was funded by state taxpayers, including those in the district.
The megasite, called the Advanced Manufacturing District, still has not publicly announced a company that will use the property, Swartz Creek resident Michelle Groesser reminded the board. It has until spring 2028 to complete the project.
“We need to put a lot more focus on educating these kids than we do a brand new building,” Groesser said.
Trustee Andrea Fick and former President Carrie Germain dissented, after speaking favorably about the potential deal. Fick said elementary buildings are not worth $40 million on the open market, and Germain said she hopes another offer comes before the board.
The board, meanwhile, asked Superintendent Ken Janczarek to compile data about student enrollment trends in case another offer comes their way.
The nature of negotiations and the efforts of the economic alliance to assemble the vast property suggest that interest in purchasing Morrish didn’t disappear “just because we voted to reject this offer,” Fick said. “This is not a dead issue.”
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